Chapter 895: Let's add each other as contacts

"That person has been dead for over an hour."

Discovering Xia Qing gazing longingly toward the mountaintop, Chang Li, who was standing beside her, whispered a word in her ear. The wolf pack had shown unusual movement, and everyone had boarded the helicopter. The wounded were lying on the long rows of seats along both sides of the cabin, so aside from the pilot in front, everyone else had to sit on the floor or stand.

Xia Qing responded softly. The infrared imaging brightness of the person on the mountaintop was not as high as when Xia Qing had aimed her sniper rifle at him, indicating he was already dead and his body temperature was dropping, so the intensity and total amount of his thermal radiation were decreasing accordingly.

"Serves him right! We should really throw these animals out and let the wolves tear them apart!" A Level-3 speed evolver from the Liang Qing squad cursed, then kicked hard at Chen Dongyang, who was bound like a crab in the corner with a black hood over his head.

Of the eight missing members of the Liang Qing squad, two had defected, three had been killed, and the three still alive had also been beaten to a bloody pulp. With this one blow, Liang Qing had lost eight core combatants. Old grudges plus new hatred—Liang Qing's people wished they could hack Chen Dongyang's gang into mincemeat.

The loud-voiced Sang Chenglin spoke up. "Brother Chuan, don't say it like that. These things are way worse than animals. Look at how that sniper killed by the evolved wolves died—does it look familiar?"

Li Chuan of the Liang Qing squad replied, "Xue Jinchang and Sun Jun, who tortured and killed wolf cubs this spring, had their arms and legs bitten off by evolved wolves."

"Exactly!" Sang Chenglin got excited too. "That sniper probably took part in the spring cub-torturing operation, which is why the wolf pack tortured him to death. Was he with the Dongyang squad or an outsider? I'm asking you!"

While speaking, Sang Chenglin kicked hard at the enemy he had captured himself.

"Brother Sang, his mouth is sealed, he can't talk." Someone beside him said speechlessly, "kindly" reminding Sang Chenglin.

Sang Chenglin grinned foolishly, "Huh? Oh! I forgot."

Everyone...

Someone had a different concern. "If that sniper did take part in the cub-torturing operation, that's fine. If not, this is going to be trouble."

If that sniper hadn't taken part in the operation and was tortured to death by the wolf pack just for entering the western mountain region, it would mean the western wolf pack's hatred toward humans runs very deep.

Another member of the Wild Beast squad spoke up with killing intent. "If that's the case, let's go at it! Wipe out these animals and avenge Brother Wang and the others."

After the cubs were killed, the western wolf pack launched a beast tide that flattened the western territory, then attacked the eastern territory. Zheng Wang of the Wild Beast squad died protecting the eastern territory, with four dead and three wounded.

Wipe out the western wolf pack? Setting aside whether it's even possible, even if it were done. God knows what fierce beasts would occupy that western wolf territory, and what chain reaction it would trigger.

The helicopter fell silent; even the roar of the rotors sounded heavy.

The Green Dragon squad had strict discipline, so no one spoke. Another member of the Liang Qing rescue team chimed in, "The sniper is dead, but we still captured six alive. Interrogate them properly and we'll know whether that sniper took part or not."

The Wild Beast squad shot back, "Interrogate, my ass! These survivors will naturally say whatever benefits them. Unless wolves can talk, this score will never be settled."

Chang Li glanced quickly at Xia Qing, who was wearing a black face mask beside her. She felt that if Xia Qing were willing to step in, she might be able to investigate the truth.

Because the wolf pack's intelligence was higher than everyone assumed.

Sang Chenglin also looked at Xia Qing, who was standing by the cabin door. "I think that sniper took part, which is why the wolf pack killed him. Look at my sister—when she went in to grab people, she didn't clash with the wolf pack."

That one sentence from Sang Chenglin focused everyone's attention on this formidable female sniper of the Green Dragon squad. Just as Chang Li was thinking about how to cover for Xia Qing's vest, Hu Zifeng spoke up. "Brother Jin."

Those two words immediately drew everyone's attention to Hu Zifeng, because he was contacting the Green Dragon captain, Yang Jin.

"Good, understood." Hu Zifeng hung up the phone and told Yin Jie, who was piloting the helicopter, "We've got the entry permit. Go straight into the airspace above the safe zone and land on our squad's helipad."

Xia Qing looked through the window at the U-shaped safe zone below, where she had once lived for eight years.

It was her first time seeing the full panorama of the safe zone from the air. From this vantage point, the gap between the inner and outer cities was even more visually striking.

It was now the wee hours of the morning. The neatly arranged street lamps of the inner city were still lit, forming a sharp contrast with the dim outer city. People in the bright areas were living; people in the dark areas were figuring out how to survive.

The helicopter landed on the helipad at the Green Dragon squad's outer-city base. After the cabin door opened, Xia Qing, who had been the last to board the helicopter, jumped down first, reached up to steady Chang Li and two nurses as they jumped down, clearing a path for those in the middle of the cabin who needed to disembark.

"Thank you." When She Xing passed by Xia Qing carrying her critically wounded and unconscious son, she thanked Xia Qing just like everyone else.

Xia Qing nodded. The emotion contained in She Xing's voice told Xia Qing that she had recognized her. But as always, anyone who had survived to Year Eleven of the Calamity was no fool. Even if she recognized Xia Qing, She Xing wouldn't say anything in front of so many people.

Sang Chenglin, the last to jump down, was very enthusiastic. "Sister, what's your phone number? Let's add each other as contacts, so we can take on missions together in the future."

What was the point of adding Sang Chenglin as a friend? Help him climb the combat power rankings?

Xia Qing shook her head and returned to the helicopter. She couldn't speak right now, because she didn't have the ability of voice evolver Chang Li. Without going through a voice changer, she couldn't produce Zhang Ling's voice.

Visual evolver Hu Zifeng saw his boss surrounded by the Liang Qing and Wild Beast squads, looking over eagerly, and for the first time felt his boss was both pathetic and pitiful.

What was the use of washing his face clean and changing into clean clothes? In Xia Qing's eyes, their boss couldn't compare to Boss Sheep or Wolf Dog Lao Er—maybe he wasn't even a match for the pumpkins in Field Three...

An hour later, the helicopter landed smoothly inside Territory One. Xia Qing jumped off the aircraft and walked briskly to Luo Pei.

It was already past two in the morning. Luo Pei didn't waste words—a couple of words of praise and he told the team members to go rest.

Zhang Ling was currently in the training dormitory of Territory One. Xia Qing entered her dormitory and briefly told her the mission's course of events.

"A speed evolver at 2030 meters, and you almost hit him—amazing!" Round-faced Zhang Ling gave a thumbs-up, then broke out in a cold sweat for Xia Qing. "Brother Luo might not be happy."

"Not might—definitely." Xia Qing, who had failed the sniping attempt, had already anticipated that the four boxes of ammunition in her underground storage room would be nearly emptied in the coming days.

Fortunately, she had some savings now, otherwise she really couldn't afford to practice.

After changing into a protective suit, Xia Qing left Territory One.

Having escaped the buzz-cut guy's pursuit, she entered the north gate of Northern Zone One's territory. When she saw Wolf Lao Er waiting for her inside the iron fence of Territory Three, Xia Qing, who had been expressionless all along, immediately broke into a smile.